Wednesday 24 May saw the end of the third edition of THINK BAG, a contest and educational project promoted and supported by Leather&Luxury magazine and the Florentine leather goods company Loipell aimed at students on the master's course in Bag Design at Polimoda.
The winner was Korean student Daseul Choi with her "Choi Bag", which will be produced by Loipell in a limited edition to be sold from September 2023 in some important Italian stores and online. The designer will also have the opportunity to carry out an internship at Dunhill, a brand part of the Richemont group, which supported the project with a lecture on the creative process held by Attilio Rebuglio, Head of Leather Goods Design at Dunhill and Nicola Scarpini, Dunhill Leather Goods Industrial Director. Daseul designed a bag with delicate shapes and an innovative design, in black nappa leather with a steel handle:
"Inspired by the aerial perspective, for this project I combined my experience in textiles with my passion for leather and patterns, drawing on the fascinating shapes and textures offered by nature and architecture. The geometric overlays on the handle of my bag are reminiscent of the feathers of a bird, the symbol of my brand, while the design pays homage to the breathtaking beauty of the Vatican City seen from above," said the young designer.
"THINK BAG has allowed me to grow as a designer, putting me to the test at all stages of the development of a bag, from the design to the research of materials, to the creation of the prototype, challenging me to find solutions to challenges. I am deeply grateful to the teachers, Conceria Nuova Overlord and Creazioni Lorenza
for their invaluable support during this project".
THINK BAG stems from a collaboration started in 2021 to invite the young talents of Polimoda to design and realise the iconic accessory par excellence, the handbag, challenging the complexities they will have to face in the world of work - such as budgets, timeframes and the difficulties of idea/prototype development.
This third edition, which started in February 2023, saw the birth and development of seven bags designed by seven designers of different nationalities. From the first presentation, it was evident how the cultural influences and origins of the students were reflected in the creations. Jin He Park (Korea) presented 'Clucth No. 01', soft, minimal and elegant, where the handle-sculpture plays the starring role. "Canetti Canetti" by Ella Canetti (Israel) is a functional bag that can be assembled in three different ways thanks to rivets placed on the green pony base. Designer Taivan Lkhagvajav (Mongolia) created the "Lotus Bag", which takes inspiration from the Buddhist world and the lotus flower, an iconic element of the religion. "Dystopia" by Roberto della Nave (Italy) is a black calfskin bag with a special weave that combined with red and blue strings gives a rock tone to the accessory. Lingyan Li (China) with 'Aurora' has reproduced a leather gyoza, using a soft nappa leather to reproduce the pinces effect. Lastly, Sonal Vora (India) designed the “Clutch Bag” that refers to Indian culture, a bag with a removable card and coin purse, conceived as a travel accessory with an innovative design. To arrive at this result, the Master in Bag Design students took part in a series of workshops aimed at devising their designs and selecting the best materials and processes to use to develop their brand's iconic bag. During these meetings, they had the opportunity to meet companies such as Air Collection, CDC, Creazioni Lorenza, Guido Falcini, Conceria Nuova Overlord, Most, Sacchettificio Toscano, Conceria Camaleonte, Serena Cecchini Design e TisseĢs by Banelli.
The next steps were to place orders with the project partners, Italian companies in the top-quality fashion supply chain, and then to create the prototypes first in salpa and then in leather, up to the final presentation of the projects in front of a jury of experts. Fashion designer Diego Salerno, Leonardo Campidelli and Nicola Scarpini, respectively Chief Supply Chain and Leather Goods Industrial Director of Dunhill, journalist Serena Isaac of The Florentine, musical artists Sarabamba, fashion designer Edoardo Terribilini, content creator Sofia Medina and Selvaggia May, fashion stylist Federica Reali and Mantovani Shop owner Paolo Mantovani, as well as representatives from Polimoda and Leather&Luxury and Loipell, were called upon to evaluate the students' projects on the basis of the criteria of general presentation, product feasibility, functionality, design, innovation and brand identity.
Daseul Choi's style proposal won over the jurors. His Choi Bag will be presented at Mipel and Lineapelle next September on the Leather&Luxury stand and then produced by Loipell in a limited edition for sale. The proceeds of the sale will be entirely donated to the Meyer Paediatric Hospital Foundation, for the support of the hospital's diabetology department, an Italian excellence for the care and health of children and a point of reference for national paediatrics in terms of research, innovative methods of treatment and child care.
